Wikipedia:Main Page history/2011 October 18

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Today's featured article
Alexandre Banza (1932–1969) was a Central African military officer and politician. As commander of the Camp Kassaï military base in 1965, Banza helped Jean-Bédel Bokassa overthrow the government of President David Dacko. Bokassa rewarded Banza by appointing him as minister of state and minister of finance in the new government. In 1967, Bokassa and his protégé had a major argument over the president's excessive extravagances. In April 1968, Bokassa removed Banza as minister of finance. Recognizing Bokassa's attempts to undermine him, Banza made a number of remarks highly critical of the president's handling of the government. Bokassa responded by abolishing the minister of state position. Banza soon decided to stage a coup d'état. One of his confidants, Jean-Claude Mandaba, contacted the president and informed him of the date of the coup, 9 April 1969. Hours before he was going to execute his bid for power, Banza was ambushed by Mandaba and taken directly to Bokassa. Bokassa nearly beat Banza to death before Mandaba suggested that Banza be put on trial for appearance's sake. On 12 April, Banza presented his case to a military tribunal, which quickly sentenced him to death by firing squad. He was reportedly taken to an open field, where he was executed and buried in an unmarked grave. (more...) Recently featured: Crown Fountain – Hermann Detzner – 1964 Brinks Hotel bombing Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that baseball pitcher Ralph Bell (pictured) led both the Western Association and Northern League in wins but appeared in only three major league games? ... that the 2009 film Tenshi no Koi was based on a Japanese cell phone novel? ... that Hanna Bergas was one of three teachers who, at Dovercourt, England, met thousands of children fleeing Nazi Germany without their parents on the Kindertransports? ... that the African Confederation of Free Trade Unions was founded in 1958 on the basis of the French Charter of Amiens? ... that V. V. S. Laxman's 281 is the highest individual score by a batsman in an India–Australia Test match? ... that the entire population of Angel Island mice on the island of Estanque in the Gulf of California may have been killed by a single domestic cat in a period of just two years? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
Dan Wheldon Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit is freed in exchange for the release of 1,027 Palestinian prisoners. British IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon (pictured) dies after a crash at the IZOD IndyCar World Championship at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The United States sends 100 military advisers to help defeat the Lord's Resistance Army in central Africa. King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Jetsun Pema, a commoner, marry in Bhutan. American hedge trader Raj Rajaratnam receives an eleven-year prison sentence, among the longest ever imposed for insider trading. Dennis Ritchie, co-creator of Unix and designer of the C programming language, dies at the age of 70. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
October 18: Feast day of Saint Luke 1386 – A special Pontifical High Mass in the Church of the Holy Spirit commemorated the opening of Heidelberg University. 1775 – American Revolutionary War: In an act of retaliation against ports that supported Patriot activities in the early stages of the war, the Royal Navy destroyed what is now Portland, Maine. 1967 – The Soviet space probe Venera 4 (pictured) performed in-place analysis of the environment of Venus and became the first spacecraft to land on another planet, although it stopped working before that. 1968 – At the Summer Olympics in Mexico City, American Bob Beamon set a world record of 8.90 m in the long jump, a mark that stood for 23 years. 1991 – The Supreme Council of Azerbaijan adopted a declaration of independence from the Soviet Union. More anniversaries: October 17 – October 18 – October 19 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now October 18, 2011 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

One Plectroctena sp. ant attacks another of its kind to protect its territory. Plectroctena ants belong to the Apocrita suborder, which also includes wasps and bees. Members of Apocrita are characterized by the narrow "waist" (petiole, seen here directly behind the rear leg on the right ant) formed between the first two segments of the actual abdomen; the first abdominal segment is fused to the thorax, and is called the propodeum.

Photo: Muhammad Mahdi Karim

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